Jenna Bush Hager Talks About How She Balances Work And Family Life
Jenna Bush Hager is a mother of two young daughters, Mila and Poppy. She’s also pregnant with her third child with her husband, Henry Hager. The child will be a boy and the first male grandchild of her famous parents, former U.S. president George Bush and former first lady Laura Bush.
The past couple of years have been a roller coaster of emotions for Hager, who has lost three grandparents in a relatively short amount of time. However, it has also been a time of great joy as she’s been given the role of Hoda Kotb’s new sidekick during the lighthearted fourth hour of the Today Show. There’s no denying the fact that Hager has plenty on her plate. Now she’s explaining just how she balances work and family life, according to Today.
Hager took over for Kathie Lee Gifford, who had previously starred during the fourth hour of the Today Show for many years. When Gifford announced that it was time for her to retire and pursue other dreams in life, it appeared that Hager was the obvious replacement choice. After all, she’d worked as a regular correspondent for the television program for years and was already very familiar with the staff. She’d also filled in for Gifford on numerous occasions, and showed fans just how great her chemistry with Kotb was.
Pregnant Jenna Bush Hager's daughter can't stop telling strangers she's having a baby brother: https://t.co/RbtHF6D9uN pic.twitter.com/RxujBxxqob
— Southern Living (@Southern_Living) June 4, 2019
What Hager probably didn’t expect when she was officially given the coveted position was that Kotb wouldn’t actually be by her side during her first couple months at the new gig. She had only just started her new job when Kotb was given the exciting news that she had been approved to officially adopt a second child, a little girl named Hope Catherine. Thus, Kotb has been on maternity leave for the past month as Hager has gracefully adjusted to working with a variety of fellow fill-in co-hosts in the meantime.
How does Hager manage to balance it all? She doesn’t have a secret method. She simply tries to do the best she can.
“I don’t believe in balance. We are all trying to do the best we can. I know, for example, my husband isn’t talking about balance with his co-workers. It’s a word that women put on each other that make us feel guilty or make us feel we are not doing our job the best way possible. So when I am with my kids I try to be completely present, and when I’m at work I try to do the same.”
